India Outfox Olympic Champions Korea 5-1 To Clinch Mixed Recurve Gold At Archery World Cup Stage 3

Indian recurve archers kept their strong run on the world stage as Olympian Dhiraj Bommadevara and teenager Kumkum Mohod beat Olympic champions South Korea 5-1 to win the recurve mixed team gold at the Archery World Cup Stage 3 in Antalya on Sunday. They defeated Kim Je-deok and Oh Ye-jin in a close final.

The Indian pair won 37-36, 37-36 and 39-39, with Dhiraj, 24, sealing the title with a perfect 10 on the last arrow. The result gave India their second win over South Korea in two months and came before the Asian Games in three months' time.

India hold their nerve against Korea

Kumkum, 17, said she stayed focused on her own shots. "I believed in myself completely. I just focused on the process and didn't think about who was standing in front of me," she said. "I think I shot better

today than I did in Shanghai. But definitely that gold medal there gave me a lot of confidence. "

The victory was India's first World Cup mixed team gold for both archers. It was also Dhiraj's first mixed team gold after bronze medals with Ankita Bhakat in 2024 and Bhajan Kaur in 2025. Kumkum won back-to-back World Cup gold after helping India's women's recurve team win in Shanghai last month.

How the final unfolded for India?

India took control early after Kim opened with a seven and Oh followed with a nine. A later measurement changed Kumkum's first arrow from nine to 10 and Kim's from seven to eight, giving India the first set 37-36. They led 4-0 after Dhiraj hit a final-arrow 10 in the second set.

Korea fought back in the third set, but Kumkum shot a pressure 10 and Dhiraj's arrow was upgraded from nine to 10 after review. The set ended 39-39, enough for India to clinch gold. Dhiraj said he learned from Kumkum's fearlessness and credited the support staff, the National federation and SAI.

The result also matched India's last recurve mixed team World Cup gold in Antalya, which came in 2022 through Ridhi Phor and Tarundeep Rai against Great Britain's Bryony Pitman and Alex Wise in a shoot-off. India had earlier stunned South Korea in Shanghai, where Deepika Kumari, Kumkum and Ankita Bhakat beat the record 10-time Olympic champions in the semifinals.